12 Respectful Pieces of Rodney Dangerfield Trivia On His Birthday

While celebrating Rodney Dangerfield’s birthday, a few of our favorite jokes came to mind. One of the comedy legend’s all-time greats was: “When I was born, I was so ugly, the doctor slapped my mother!” It didn’t seem to get easier for little infant Rodney either. Apparently, his mother never breast fed him. She told him she only liked him as a friend. That rumor came straight from Rodney himself, so you know it must be true. 

Speaking of truth… We stumbled upon a solid batch of trivia truthlets about Mr. Dangerfield that we think you’ll enjoy just as much as his zesty zingers. Hmm, with the lack of respect he seemed to get, we wonder if that was the first time someone referred to him as “Mister.”

12 Day One

He was born Jacob Rodney Cohen on November 22, 1921 in Babylon, New York. His mother was Dorothy “Dotty” Teitelbaum and his father was Phillip Cohen — A vaudevillian performer who abandoned the family shortly after Rodney’s birth.

[subtitle][num]11]/num]His Early Career[/subtitle]

To cope with a difficult childhood, Rodney began writing jokes at the age of 15. Before he was known for his own material, he sold jokes to Jackie Mason and Joan Rivers. 

10 Rodney the Rapper

In 1983, Rodney released a comedy album called “Rappin’ Rodney.” It reached number 83 on the Billboard Hot 100. Man, the ‘80s were a strange time.

9 Rodney’s Comedy Club, Dangerfield’s

He opened the club in New York City in 1969 to be closer to his kids. After his ex-wife became too ill to care for their children, he became their sole caregiver. 

8 He Was Pivotal to Jim Carrey’s Success

Dangerfield played an important role in comedian Jim Carrey’s career. In the ‘80s, after watching Carrey perform at the Comedy Store, Rodney had Carrey open for him in Las Vegas.The two toured together for roughly two years.

7 He Thought He Was Bombing on ‘Caddyshack’

During filming, he pulled Harold Ramis aside and said, “I don’t get it! I’m dying out there!” Ramis had to reassure him that everyone was loving it. They just couldn’t laugh during takes.

6 He Won A Grammy

In 1981, his album No Respect won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. Other nominees included Richard Pryor’s Holy Smoke, Gilda Radner’s Live From New York, and Eric Idle and John Cleese’s Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album. Paul Simon presented the award.

5 Rodney in Music Videos

During the ‘80s, he appeared in Billy Joel’s video for “Tell Her About It” and Lionel Richie’s video for “Dancing on the Ceiling.”

4 Improv on ‘Caddyshack’

During the yacht club party scene, his bizarre disco dancing wasn’t choreographed. Director Harold Ramis just told him to act like the life of the party. 

3 He Disturbed The Cast of ‘Natural Born Killers’

While filming 1994’s Natural Born Killers, Juliette Lewis said his improvised abusive tirades were so convincing and venomous that she had trouble separating Rodney the person from the character.

2 He Had A Hearth Attack on ‘The Tonight Show’

While performing stand-up on November 22, 2001 (his 80th birthday), host Jay Leno noticed something was wrong with Dangerfield’s movements, and asked his producer to call the paramedics. It turns out that he suffered a heart attack mid-set.

1 SNL’s Tribute

After Rodney’s passing in 2004, SNL ran a short sketch with Darrell Hammond playing him at the gates of heaven. He gets to tell some classic one-liners to St. Peter and is waved in through the pearly gates. Hammond declares, “Finally! A little respect!”

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